ERD50
Give me a museum and I'll fill it. (Picasso) Give me a forum ...
Seriously, I'm not pulling any legs here.
This is getting tough to swallow. But what the heck, I've already got enough invested in this, I'm going to take the bus trip group one step further. After that, you just *gotta* explain to me where the inconsistency is, deal?
TRIP #3 - on the way home: The 10 people sitting in the seats on the far left of the bus start talking among themselves. They agree that the bus driver has done an outstanding job, and figuring he could use the money, agree that everyone should chip in $1 and they can then give the driver a $30 tip.
They mention this to the 10 people in the middle seats. Those ten people are not impressed with the driver at all, they don't think he put forth any extra effort. They say that the driver is getting paid by the bus company, that was reflected in the price they paid for their tickets, and that is good enough.
Word gets to the people on the far right seats of the bus. They agree with the people in the middle. Further, they say they saw the bus driver buy cigarettes and lottery tickets when they stopped for lunch. They figure the driver would just waste the money anyhow. The far right sitters are not interested in parting with anymore of their hard-earned money.
The far left of the bus wants to put it to vote. Predictably, they are overruled, 20 against a tip to 10 for a tip.
As they get off the bus, the 20 middle and right voters notice that the 10 far left voters don't leave any tip for the driver. The 20 say that the 10 are hypocrites.
The 10 could have chipped in the $1 that they all said was the "right thing to do". No one would stop them, they are free to do so. It is what they said everyone should do, it what they said they should do. Isn't a $10 tip for the driver better than no tip? They could even say "This tip is from this group of people". Or, they could have agreed to chip in $3 each to come up with the full $30, since they felt the driver was so deserving.
But, to chip in NOTHING, after claiming that EVERYONE should do it, is HYPOCRISY. No?
This is EXACTLY like the "every high income person should pay more taxes" argument. OK, go ahead - if you feel that way - pay. You are free to do so, you don't need my approval, you don't need the approval of Congress. Make an annual donation to the Federal Govt, I assure you they will accept it. You can even take credit for it, like charitable donors do when they donate a big check and the press is there and everything. Get that website together, collect a few million from like minded people, and put your names up there for all to see. I'll even thank you for your contribution.
It comes to that old saying: Put up or shut up.
Now, tell me where there is anything wrong with any of that thinking. I think it is EXACTLY correct, and EXACTLY an analogue to the tax situation.
Show me you are not just pulling our legs, and set me straight if I am off the mark.
-ERD50